Tearing down the other wall

Photo:©Dirk Laubner, Visualisierung: buenck+fehse gmbh / Berliner Flughäfen, Digitale Medien GmbH
Tearing down the other wall
¬
1
Tearing down an aeropolitical wall
Why Berlin and Stuttgart deserve long-haul international services
Berlin is a world city of enormous international business and tourism attraction.
Germany’s largest city – and the eighth most populous area in the European Union – Berlin is a
centre of culture, politics, media and science that actively seeks international investment.
Like Dubai, it is hugely multicultural, with the Berlin-Brandenburg area compassing five million
people from over 190 nations.
These are but a few reasons why Berlin has long been an attractive destination for Emirates
Airline to add to our global network.
Stuttgart is a city and region of equally strong attraction and importance to Emirates, albeit for
different commercial, demographic and business reasons.
Considered the creative power of Germany, Stuttgart businesses have an enormous stake in the
Gulf and Dubai: from Baden-Württemberg wines to Daimler AG, Porsche, Bosch and hundreds
of German SMEs from the region. All are welcomed and encouraged in Dubai as valued
importers of high-quality German goods and services.
Indeed, German businesses from these regions recently secured contracts worth more than
one billion Euros from Dubai Airport’s redevelopment, including the likes of Siemens and
ThyssenKrupp.
However Berlin and Stuttgart share more than just international economic importance and a
strong interest from Emirates to fly there.
Both cities are deprived of international long-haul services; their visitors and citizens largely
forced to fly via hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. And both cities are also off limits to Emirates,
despite our long standing request to offer long-haul international services.
This document seeks to explain why Berlin and Stuttgart are attractive to an airline like Emirates,
why Lufthansa is determined to deny us access to these markets and why we believe the citizens
and visitors of both regions deserve the right to direct, long-haul flights over the alternative of
only being allowed to fly via Lufthansa’s German hubs.
The Lufthansa argument against competition from Emirates is that in order to serve Berlin or
Stuttgart, we must ‘simply’ give up our other German points – like Hamburg or Düsseldorf – and
end years of investment, employment and marketing of these regions. We think this is muddleheaded and an insult to economically important regions in their own right. German aviation is
more than just Lufthansa’s two hubs.
To best illustrate this point, consider the cover of this document. Like Stuttgart, Berlin has
invested very considerable sums in to new airport infrastructure. In Berlin’s case, the new multibillion-Euro BBI Airport, due to open in 2011.
What better way to secure a return on this investment – and to offer the German and
international traveler more choice, competition and long-haul options – than allow an
independent international airline like Emirates fly to Berlin and Stuttgart?
We welcome Air Berlin’s recent decision to commence scheduled flights from Berlin to Dubai
in November 2010. Unlike Lufthansa, Air Berlin clearly shares Emirates’ belief in Berlin’s strong
credentials as a profitable intercontinental
market. However, while the German carrier is
free to enter the Berlin-Dubai route without
any restrictions, Emirates still has no access to
the route.
Why only allow one country’s carrier and not
another? Why not bring down this stifling
aeropolitical wall?
Photo: Air Berlin
Lufthansa’s claim: ‘…if an artificial hub is allowed to replace our national centres
of transport, it would be tantamount to exporting German jobs to the Gulf.’
Why Lufthansa considers a hub in a region of 260 million people artificial is unclear and
we strongly disagree that Dubai’s aviation credentials are synthetic. Emirates’ home market
is not only Dubai but the Middle Eastern catchment area - just as Lufthansa’s catchment
is not only Frankfurt and Munich, but the whole of Europe. Our carefully planned and
measured aircraft orders reflect the population size and potential of our region, as well as
its broader neighbourhood. The European Union - with 499 million people - has 11 airports
(including Frankfurt and Munich) among the world’s 20 largest international airports. The
entire Middle East in the same list is represented by a single airport - Dubai. It is then logical
for Emirates to want to grow at its Dubai hub, given the needs of this enormous market.
Emirates employs tens of thousands of Germans – both directly and indirectly. This includes
our German pilots, management, staff in our nine German offices and workers on the A380
production line in Hamburg; an aircraft that Emirates is the single largest purchaser.
2
Credible voices
‘’Emirates is a first class worldwide acting carrier and is ready to offer direct flights BerlinDubai - therefore we support the decision of Emirates to fly to the German capital. The
intention of Emirates to put the capital in its flight schedule is for me additional proof of the
necessity of the new airport Berlin-Brandenburg International. The new airport will bring
the rest of the world closer to us and will integrate people, ideas, goods and technologies
of the region even better into the global economy.” - Matthias Platzeck, Prime Minister of
Brandenburg.
“From my point of view it is important, that we get a direct flight Stuttgart-Dubai.… The United Arab Emirates is for us an important economic partner. Direct flights between Dubai and Stuttgart would give the health care industry and the tourism industry of Baden-Württemberg important economic impulses.” - Wolfgang Reinhart, Minister for Federal, European and International Affairs, Federal State Baden-Württemberg.
obtain traffic rights for Stuttgart. This is also the wish/demand of the business people in BadenWürttemberg. Just the direct economic benefit from this route is estimated at 175 Mio Euro/
year.” - Günther H. Oettinger, Former Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg.
“Berlin needs many more direct flights” - Dr. Eric Schweitzer, President of the Chamber of
Commerce of Berlin
“ [Air Service Agreements] should not be to the disadvantage of Berlin, there must be fair
competition, in which we are able to participate in air traffic growth.” - Christian Amsinck, Head of Berlin Business Associations.
“Intercontinental connections like the one offered by Delta Air Lines from Stuttgart to Atlanta
provide an obvious infrastructural advantage for the whole of Baden-Württemberg as a business
location.” – Geschäftsbericht 2009, Stuttgart Airport GmbH.
“In view of the completion of BBI, the new airport of the capital, we are more and more
interested in generating additional long haul destinations, especially to the countries in the Gulf region.” - Dr. Rainer Schwarz, CEO Berlin Airports.
“I consider it as reasonable to strengthen the economic factor of Berlin by additional air
connections” - Rainer Brüderle, Federal Minister of Economics.
“We are approaching with giant strides the capital’s new airport BBI. Besides Frankfurt and
Munich hubs, it becomes another important international transportation hub. A gateway to
the world is created here - both for the capital region Berlin-Brandenburg, and for the entire
aviation and logistics sector in Germany. The Federal Government shareholder invests around
1.3 billion Euros in this large airport.” - Rainer Bomba, State Secretary, Federal Ministry of
Transport, Building and Urban Affairs.
“Business follows infrastructure. The Federal Government should help the capital to get
connections and accessibility to the world” - Stephan Schwarz, President of the Berlin
Chamber of Trade.
“The optimization of Stuttgart Airport...is one of the most important transport policy goals
of the government of Baden-Württemberg. This means also the development of additional
intercontinental destinations from Stuttgart. The destination Dubai and the connecting
destinations in China, India and South East Asia are high on our agenda . The government of
Baden-Württemberg is fully committed that Emirates and other airlines from the Gulf region
Photo: Flughafen Stuttgart GmbH
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Von Berlin in die Welt – aber nicht direkt
des Tages
Emirates möchte den neuen Flughafen BBI für Direktflüge nutzen. Der Bund und Lufthansa verhindern das – zum Schaden der Region
Von Gerd Appenzeller
nden am Dienstag an
r Chiphersteller invesDresden. Grund genug
eine anhaltende Nachrn zu glauben.
T Geflüster
-Mann für das Gefängdas Mainzer Amtsgehen Schwarzfahrer erwährungsstrafe verurrzichteten auf ArbeitsKörperumfang es dem
glich mache, sich sinns Gericht sah auch von
da es Angriffe von MitMann fürchtet. Wir
ankern, denen im Zuge
ftstrafen drohen, sich
en. Und wenn sie platehen wir nicht.
jmi
RICHTEN
F
ristet
der Beschäftigten mit
Arbeitsvertrag ist so
8 hatten 2,7 Millionen
r 8,9 Prozent aller Ere zeitlich befristete
atistische Bundesamt
lte. „Seit 1991 waren
ch niemals mehr Erfristetem Vertrag beZu Beginn der gesamtk lag die Quote noch
rtr
kritisiert DIW-Chef
Präsident des DeutWirtschaftsforschung
mermann muss bei der
Kuratoriums am Donm Gegenwind von den
des rechnen. „Es gibt
was in so einem Amt
es am Dienstag aus
igten Bundesministet, Bildung und Finanegebenen Umständen
nicht möglich.“ Der
of hatte dem DIW die
fentlicher Gelder vorrmittelt die Staatsan-
Berlin - Erneut ist ein Versuch einer ausländischen Fluggesellschaft, direkte Verbindungen auf Langstrecken von und
nach Berlin zu etablieren, am Widerstand
des Bundesverkehrsministeriums gescheitert. Während der Internationalen
Tourismusbörse (ITB) hatte Scheich Ahmed bin Saaed al Maktoum, der Vorstandschef von Emirates, dem beamteten
Staatssekretär Klaus-Dieter Scheurle den
Wunsch vorgetragen, Berlin vom Golf
aus direkt anzufliegen. Scheurle lehnte
dies nach Angaben eines Emirates-Sprechers unter Hinweis auf die konjunkturelle Lage ab. Man möge in einem halben
Jahr noch einmal vorsprechen.
Damit rückt der Eröffnungstermin des
Großflughafens Berlin-Brandenburg International (BBI) nahe an einen möglichen neuen Anlauf von Emirates im
Hause Ramsauer. BBI wird im Oktober
2011 den Betrieb aufnehmen. Sowohl die
Länder Berlin und Brandenburg als auch
die Flughafengesellschaft und Wirtschaftsorganisationen der Region versuchen seit Jahren, Berlin mit dem neuen
Flughafen besser an den internationalen
Luftverkehr anzubinden. Gerade war
Flughafenchef Rainer Schwarz wieder in
der Golfregion unterwegs.
Bislang blieb alles ohne Erfolg. Lufthansa bietet zwar keine direkten Fernverbindungen von und nach Berlin an,
möchte aber ihre sogenannten Hubs – die
Umsteigeflughäfen Frankfurt am Main
und München – stärken, indem sie den
internationalen Berlinverkehr über diese
Airports leitet. Seit die Lufthansa bei der
Swiss eingestiegen ist, hat sie Zürich als
Umsteigeplatz Richtung Süden gestärkt.
Mit dem Einstieg bei Austrian Airlines
wurde Wien für den Flugverkehr Richtung Südosten aktiviert.
Diese Politik der Lufthansa ist wirtschaftlich nachvollziehbar, aber ihre Interessen liegen hier konträr zu denen der
Wirtschaft der Region Berlin-Brandenburg. Das machte Lufthansa-Chef Wolfgang Mayrhuber erst vor wenigen Wochen bei einer Veranstaltung der Industrie- und Handelskammer (IHK) in Berlin
nur zu deutlich. Auf eine Frage zur Entwicklung der Lufthansa in Berlin sagte er:
„Natürlich wird die Lufthansa in Berlin
wachsen, irgendwann einmal.“ Auf eine
Nachfrage zum Fernverkehr sagte er: „Natürlich wird der Interkontinentalverkehr
in Berlin wachsen, aber das dauert.“ Thomas Kropp, der Vorstandsbevollmächtigte der Lufthansa, lobt zwar die Entscheidung für den einen großen Flughafen BBI, weil „damit zum ersten Mal Umsteigeverbindungen im größeren Stil
möglich sein werden“ – schränkt dann
Unerwünscht. Der deutsche Branchenführer Lufthansa will offenbar nicht, dass der Konkurrent Emirates in Berlin Fuß fasst.
aber ein, dass man sich die Wirkung des
neuen Airports erst einmal anschauen
wolle. Seine Airline sieht Kropp in der
Hauptstadt „durchaus auf Augenhöhe
mit Air Berlin“. Immerhin habe die Lufthansa seit 1990, dem Jahr, in dem sie erstmals wieder nach Berlin fliegen durfte,
das Personal von damals 27 Mitarbeitern
auf heute 3600 ausgebaut.
Das Bundesverkehrsministerium sieht
sich offenbar in der Pflicht, die Marktposition der Lufthansa als eines „National Carriers“ zu stärken und deren bezüglich Berlins attentistische Haltung damit zu unterstützen. Tatsächlich
hat die Kranichlinie
diese Position der
Berlin und
Stärke aber in der ReBrandenburg gion längst nicht
mehr. Air Berlin versind einig.
kündete in der verAber das
gangenen Woche,
nützt nichts Berlin weiter zu einem internationalen
Umsteigeplatz ausbauen zu wollen. Air Berlin will mit 22
Maschinen 6000 wöchentliche Verbindungen von und nach Berlin anbieten.
Sowohl die IHK als auch die Handwerkskammer und die Wirtschaftsförderungsgesellschaft „Berlin Partner“, aber
auch der wirtschaftsorientierte Nah- und
Mittelostverein haben in den vergangenen Jahren immer wieder in Briefen an
Millionen
das Bundesverkehrsministerium auf die
desolate Lage hingewiesen. Im März
2007 etwa baten die Präsidenten von
IHK und Handwerkskammer den damaligen Bundesverkehrsminister Wolfgang
Tiefensee, sich dem Wunsch von Emirates nach Landerechten in Berlin nicht weiter zu widersetzen. Die Kammerpräsidenten Eric Schweitzer und Stephan Schwarz
wiesen den Sozialdemokraten darauf hin,
dass Emirates die Messestandorte Hamburg, Düsseldorf, München und Frankfurt anfliege. Berlin von der lukrativen
Route von und zu den Golfstaaten auszuschließen, die Lufthansa nicht bedient,
sei gleichbedeutend mit einer Benachteiligung des Messe- und Wirtschaftsstandortes Berlin. Erfolg: null.
Einen Monat später schrieben Ministerpräsident Matthias Platzeck und Berlins
Regierender Bürgermeister Klaus Wowereit an ihren Parteifreund Tiefensee. Sie
versuchten, die von der Lufthansa und
dem Ministerium vertretene These zu widerlegen, eine Expansion auswärtiger
Fluggesellschaften in Deutschland würde
die heimische Luftverkehrsindustrie negativ tangieren. Die beiden Regierungschefs in Potsdam und Berlin wiesen den
Minister auf eine Studie der Initiative
Luftverkehr hin, der zufolge ganz im Gegenteil eine Ausweitung des Luftverkehrs
„signifikante Beschäftigungseffekte“ auslösen würde. Pikant daran: An dieser Ini-
Foto: dpa
tiative Luftverkehr ist die Lufthansa beteiligt. Auch hier: kein Erfolg.
Wirklich deutlich wurde ein Jahr später hingegen Ministerialdirektor Thilo
Schmidt aus dem Verkehrsministerium
bei der Beantwortung eines Schreibens
des Nah-und Mittelostvereins in gleicher
Sache an Minister Tiefensee. Er habe
zwar, schrieb Schmidt, durchaus Verständnis „für alle Anliegen, die Position
Berlins mit neuen Langstreckendirektverbindungen zu stärken“. Da aber „eine
deutliche Mehrheit der von den Golfcarriern in Deutschland aufgenommenen
Passagiere“ zu weiter entfernten Zielen
befördert werde, seien „unmittelbar deutsche Luftverkehrsinteressen“ berührt –
im Klartext: Deswegen ist Konkurrenz
nicht erwünscht.
Doch die deutschen Interessen sieht
Andrew Parkers, bei Emirates für politische Fragen zuständig, völlig anders.
„Emirates hat bei Airbus 58 Maschinen
vom Typ A380 bestellt“, sagte er dem Tagesspiegel. „Das ist ein Auftragsvolumen
von mehr als 15 Milliarden Euro, und davon profitieren ganz massiv auch Arbeitsplätze in Deutschland.“
Dessen ungeachtet bleibt das Bundesverkehrsministerium bei seiner Position,
mehr Verständnis für mögliche und nicht
einmal nachgewiesene Belange der Lufthansa als für die Wirtschaft der Region
und den Hauptstadtstandort zu zeigen.
Denn selbstverständlich sei, so der Geschäftsführer von Berlin Partner, René
Gurka, zum Tagesspiegel, für alle international vernetzten Unternehmen bei der
Wahl eines neuen Standortes die Frage direkter Flugverbindungen ins Ausland
von entscheidender Bedeutung. Bei der
wachsenden Dimension des Gesundheitstourismus für den Berliner Raum stelle
sich das Fehlen direkter Flugverbindungen in den arabischen Raum als ausgesprochen hinderlich heraus. Wer viel
Geld für teurere Behandlungen in Berlin
ausgeben wolle, lasse sich nicht mit Umsteigeverbindungen abspeisen und wähle
dann eher ein Ziel wie London. Deshalb
empfinde man das Verhalten des Bundesverkehrsministeriums und der Lufthansa
gegenüber Die Kanzlerin
dem Standort Berlin
als nicht angemes- hatte
sen.
Emirates
Abgesehen
von
der größeren Be- Hoffnungen
quemlichkeit des Di- gemacht
rektfluges spielt bei
Langstrecken auch
der Zeitfaktor eine Rolle. Delta fliegt die
Strecke von Berlin-Tegel nach New York
direkt in 9:25 Stunden, Continental
braucht noch 15 Minuten weniger. Lufthansa fliegt die Strecke, mit Umsteigen in
Frankfurt oder München, zwischen
12:20 und 14:25 Stunden.
Zwar lässt sich kaum nachweisen, dass
ein bestimmtes ansiedlungswilliges Unternehmen wegen der fehlenden internationalen Verbindungen nicht nach Berlin
gekommen ist. Aber selbstverständlich
spielt Mobilität immer eine wichtige
Rolle. Die rühmt Martin Fensch, Sprecher des weltgrößten Pharmakonzerns
Pfizer, besonders am Standort Berlin. Bei
der Verlagerung der Deutschlandzentrale
von Karlsruhe nach Berlin hätten aber die
Attraktivität der Stadt für internationale
Talente und das wissenschaftliche und
medizinische Umfeld die entscheidende
Rolle gespielt.
Bei Emirates hofft man jetzt auf einen
Sinneswandel im Blick auf die Eröffnung
von BBI im Herbst 2011. Und erinnert
sich an eine Pressekonferenz, die Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel mit dem Premierminister der Vereinigten Emirate,
Scheich Mohammed bin Raschid al Maktoum, bei dessen Deutschlandbesuch am
7. Februar 2008 gegeben hatte. Auf die
Frage nach Berlin-Direktflügen aus dem
arabischen Raum antwortete die Bundeskanzlerin, Berlin baue gerade einen großen internationalen Flughafen und auf
dem seien „die Vereinigten Arabischen
Emirate ein ganz fester Posten bei der zukünftigen Nutzung“.
Die Exportnation wehrt sich
Berlin’s influential daily newspaper Der
Tagesspiegel recently published an article
‘From Berlin to the world – but not directly’,
with a subtitle ‘Emirates wants to use the new
BBI airport for direct flights. The Federal
Government and Lufthansa prevent this - to
the detriment of the region’.
Highlights of this article include:
•Once again, a foreign carrier’s attempts
to operate direct long haul flights to/from
Berlin have failed because of Government
resistance. During the ITB in Berlin, Emirates’
request to operate to Berlin was declined,
with reference to the current economic
situation.
•The BBI airport will open in October 2011.
Both the Federal States concerned - Berlin
and Brandenburg, the airport company and
business organizations in the region - have
been trying for years to improve links to the
new airport via international air traffic. So far
without success.
•Lufthansa offers no direct long-haul
connections to/from Berlin, routing
international Berlin traffic via Frankfurt
and Munich hubs. Lufthansa’s interests are
against the economic interests of the BerlinBrandenburg region.
•The Federal Ministry of Transport feels
obliged to strengthen Lufthansa’s market
position as a ‘national carrier’, supporting the
airline’s attitude towards flights from Berlin.
•Various business initiatives and associations
have supported Emirates’ wish to operate to
Berlin. Excluding Berlin from the lucrative
route to and from the Gulf is tantamount to
disadvantaging Berlin as a convention and
business location.
4
Responding to specific Lufthansa claims to stop competition from Emirates
Photo: Fraport AG
In April 2010 a document was circulated to German stakeholders and media by Lufthansa,
entitled ‘Why doesn’t Emirates fly to Berlin’.
The document contained many allegations and assumptions regarding our company, our
business model and relationship with Germany which we believe are false and deliberately
misleading.
Here we seek to address these errors and distortions but most importantly, respond to the core
of the Lufthansa complaint: that Emirates should not be allowed to fly to Berlin (or Stuttgart)
and that Berlin does not warrant long-haul international services.
1. ‘…while Frankfurt has been waiting for a new runway for more than eleven years, the
emirate built a monumental new airport within three years. Now the Emirates fleet is to
be radically expanded to fill this new airport.’
•It is not uncommon for governments or state-linked entities around the world to help finance expansion of airport infrastructure, viewing them as key drivers for economic
growth and essential for connectivity to the global economy. Recent examples include
Berlin Brandenburg International Airport, Munich Airport, Chep Lap Kok in Hong Kong,
Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur International Airport,
Incheon International Airport, Kansai International Airport, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Athens
International Airport, Oslo International Airport and Madrid Barajas International Airport.
•The opening of Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport in 2008 enabled the airport to increase the number of passengers handled and to free up space in adjoining terminals at
the airport for other airlines – hardly ‘a monumental new airport’ as described by Lufthansa.
•That Frankfurt has been waiting for a new runway for more than ten years says more about Germany’s long drawn out planning approval process, than it does about the forward thinking aviation infrastructure policies and priorities in Dubai.
5
• The growth in Emirates’ aircraft fleet has always been progressive and measured - based on
detailed economic analysis of aircraft performance criteria, demand forecasts and market potential for all aircraft types and markets - and has never been based on a simplistic notion to purely utilize local airport infrastructure.
2. ‘Dubai with its small size and population, will always remain relatively insignificant both
as a destination and also more importantly as a source market for incoming tourism and
business traffic to Berlin.’
• Dubai has become a significant tourism and business destination in its own right. It receives approximately 7.5 million visitors per year, which translates to around 500 visitors per 100
residents annually, compared to just 30 international visitors per 100 residents in Germany.
• Dubai is one the most important long haul destinations worldwide for German visitors –
totaling over 360,000 in 2009, an increase of 13% over 2008 despite the global economic
downturn.
• Visitor numbers from the Arabian Gulf States into Germany have been increasing strongly,
outperforming the growth rate of international arrivals into Germany as a whole in 2009.
Visitors from the UAE alone accounted for almost 200,000 overnight stays in Germany
in 2009. The German National Tourist Board expects that the number of tourists from the
Arabian Gulf States will further increase, to a forecasted 1.6 million overnight stays in
Germany in 2015 - almost as much as tourists from Japan and India combined.
• Berlin is grossly underserved by intercontinental air services compared to similar cities in
Europe and even compared to some smaller European capitals:
Australia and at any other points on our network - there is no reason why Berlin and
Stuttgart would be any different. For example, Emirates has been active in growing the
Australian international aviation market from non-traditional points in the Middle East,
Europe and Africa. Since launching services to Australia in 1996, business and leisure
travellers from Dubai and the local region to Australia have grown 18% year-on-year.
Emirates has filled the vacuum left by the legacy carriers, including by Lufthansa, who have
withdrawn from the Australian market completely in lieu of their alliance partners.
3. ‘…the airline from Dubai views Berlin at best as its fifth choice…’
• Emirates has built up its services to Germany progressively since first starting flights to
Germany in 1987 - in fact, Frankfurt was one of Emirates’ first European services coming
only two years after the airline commenced operations. Emirates started flights to Munich
in 1999, Düsseldorf in 2001 and Hamburg in 2006. Given this timeline, and put in context
of the relatively recent renewal and re-establishment of Berlin as Germany’s capital, it is
ridiculous to suggest that Berlin is Emirates’ fifth choice destination in Germany.
• In terms of priorities, Lufthansa’s decision to terminate its only intercontinental service
from Berlin - to Washington - after not much more than 6 months in 2001, suggests that it
should not be making claims as to the priorities of others. In contrast, Air Berlin’s planned
commencement of Berlin-Dubai services this year demonstrates the viability of Berlin as an
intercontinental market. It also confirms our belief in the strong potential of the Berlin-Dubai
route, for both Emirates and German carriers.
• Similarly, Lufthansa offers no intercontinental services from Stuttgart - despite the city’s
economic importance, large catchment area and local market potential ranked third in
Germany only after Frankfurt and Düsseldorf. Stuttgart is linked with few intercontinental
destinations, lagging well behind several comparable European cities:
Population in Millions
Number of Intercontinental
Destinations
Rome
2.7
65
Madrid
3.2
53
City
Brussels
1.1
47
Athens
3.8
Vienna
Berlin
City
Population in Millions
Number of Intercontinental
Destinations
Zurich
0.4
50
23
Düsseldorf
0.6
35
1.7
22
Lyon
0.5
20
3.4
16
Helsinki
1.0
11
Glasgow
0.6
8
Stuttgart
0.6
3
• The suggestion that Dubai would be insignificant as a source market for incoming tourism
and business traffic to Berlin directly contradicts the positive experience of Emirates in
6
4. ‘For instance, both parties to the agreement - the countries - should benefit from the
aviation agreement in proportion to their size of their population.’
• The Germany-UAE air services agreement, like other such agreements worldwide, does not
in any way suggest that benefits from this bilateral agreement should accrue to the parties
in proportion to their territory or population size. Such a principle would not only be
discriminatory on smaller nations and their airlines, but would contradict the very notion of ‘fair competitive conditions’ which Lufthansa is advocating. Is Lufthansa promoting
the same anti-competitive philosophy vis-à-vis countries that have larger populations
than Germany, such as India, China or even the U.S.? Certainly not, given that Lufthansa
operates around 70% of all flights between Germany and India and well over 50% between
Germany and China.
5. ‘…the national carriers of the Gulf States (Emirates, Etihad and Qatar) already fly 90
times per week to Germany…Lufthansa only flies 27 times per week to the Gulf…’
• This figure is incorrect. Lufthansa and its subsidiaries currently operate 28 weekly flights
to Dubai alone, and operated up to 35 weekly flights in 2009 (close to Emirates’ 49 weekly
flights between Dubai and Germany).
• Lufthansa is selectively narrowing down the definition of ‘Gulf States’. The definition
‘Arabian Gulf States’ is commonly applied to the six Gulf Co-operation Council countries, i.e.
not only the UAE and Qatar, but also Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait. Lufthansa
omits to mention the last four countries though. The reason is simple, Lufthansa’s flights
outnumber markedly all other airlines’ operations on the routes between Germany and these countries.
6. ‘…the number of destinations in the country flown to. A comparison between Germany
and Dubai currently returns a score of 1:4 - due to natural constraints, German airlines
like Lufthansa can only fly to one airport…’
• The ‘score’ is actually 3:4 as Lufthansa operates to three points in the UAE – Dubai, Abu
Dhabi and, in all-cargo services, Sharjah. What ‘natural constraints’ is Lufthansa talking
about? According to the current Germany-UAE air services agreement, Lufthansa is entitled
to operate from any number of points in Germany to any number of points in the UAE
without, unlike Emirates, any restriction.
• On the other hand, the ‘score’ becomes 2:1 in Lufthansa’s favour when points of departure
in each other’s territory are taken into account – while Lufthansa currently operates from
two points in Germany (Frankfurt and Munich hubs) to Dubai, Emirates only flies from one
point in the UAE (Dubai) to Germany. Following the launch of Air Berlin’s flights from Berlin
to Dubai in November 2010, the ‘score’ further increases to 3:1 for German carriers.
7. ‘Emirates has more than exceeded its allocation of destinations: under the terms of the
1996 aviation agreement there were to be only three destinations which Emirates was
free to select, a fourth destination was provisionally approved in 2002 by the Federal
Ministry of Transport.’
• The Germany-UAE air services agreement was signed in 1994 and not in 1996.
• Emirates does not exceed, and never has, its allocation of destinations in Germany. Emirates
always fully complies with bilateral air services arrangements in all countries it operates
to, including Germany. As officially agreed between the UAE and German aeronautical
authorities, Emirates has a permanent right to operate to a fourth German destination Hamburg. Hence Emirates is fully utilizing, but not exceeding, its existing quota of points of
call in Germany.
• As implicitly acknowledged by Lufthansa, there has been no enhancement to the number
of destinations in Germany for Emirates for the last eight years - despite the phenomenal
growth in demand for both Emirates and Lufthansa services between Dubai and Germany.
This supports Emirates’ request for additional points in Germany, which would have little
negative impact on Lufthansa.
8. ‘On the basis of these agreements, Emirates and the other Gulf carriers enjoy
exceptionally liberal landing rights in Germany…’
• Lufthansa has a selective approach to the advancement of liberalisation and competition
- with the Germany-Dubai market being a good example. When the Germany-UAE air
services agreement was first negotiated in 1986, Emirates was a new start-up one year old
airline which was not even flying to Germany. That agreement imposed no restrictions on
the number of flights, fifth freedom traffic rights and points of destinations in the UAE for
German carriers (it did restrict UAE carriers to two points only in Germany though). Such an
agreement, together with Dubai’s open skies policies, suited Lufthansa as it would dominate
the Germany-Dubai market for many years, exercising fifth freedom traffic rights beyond
Dubai extensively as well.
• Did Lufthansa take into account the interest of Emirates at that time? No. Was Lufthansa
worried about equal opportunities at that time? No. Did Lufthansa complain about its
‘exceptionally liberal’ landing rights in the UAE at that time? No. The liberal arrangements
served Lufthansa very well so long as the German airline could exploit them. With the
emergence of a local competitor - Emirates - however, market conditions changed and
further liberalisation was no longer suitable to Lufthansa in this particular market. Hence
their calls for protection. This is a major difference between Emirates and Lufthansa.
Emirates does not seek, nor would it receive, any aeropolitical protection in the fiercely
competitive Dubai market where it competes with over 130 other carriers.
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11. ‘Why is Emirates so set on eliminating the remnants of competitiveness fairness and
further worsening the imbalance of landing rights…’
• There is no imbalance in landing rights under the Germany-UAE air services arrangements
in favour of Emirates. On the contrary, not only has Lufthansa the same rights as Emirates,
it additionally faces no restriction on the number of destination points in the UAE (nor
departure points in Germany) under such arrangements.
• The fact is that ‘competitiveness fairness’ in Lufthansa’s language really means artificial
protection against healthy competition.
12. ‘…Dubai’s state carrier Emirates - which not only owns the airline, but also the airport,
air traffic control and the ground services companies…’
• Emirates does not own Dubai International Airport, nor any of its air traffic control facilities.
• Emirates pays the full published landing and ATC charges - not benefiting from any form of
volume related discounts, and same airport handling fees as would any high volume airline
customer at a major international airport.
• Lufthansa has a close relationship with aviation infrastructure providers in Germany:
- Owns almost 10% of Fraport.
9. ‘Over the past few years…, the Dubai-based carrier has grown five times as fast as the
market (26% compared with 5% per annum).’
• Emirates’ passenger traffic grew at an annual growth rate of 16% over the last five years.
Our growth has always been organic, and focusing on a single hub - Dubai. This contrasts
sharply with Lufthansa’s policy of aggressive expansion via acquisitions of European
carriers - resulting in Lufthansa Group’s domination of multiple hub airports in Europe,
in addition to its core hubs of Frankfurt and Munich. Lufthansa’s long list of strategically
based subsidiaries now includes once independent airlines such as Austrian, Swiss, BMI, SN
Brussels and Eurowings.
10. ‘What’s more, Emirates even enjoys the so-called “Fifth Freedom” for aviation between
Germany and the US.’
• Emirates does have such rights, but utilized them on passenger services only very briefly
(between October 2006 to March 2008) on Hamburg-New York sector. Similarly, Lufthansa
enjoys unrestricted fifth freedom traffic rights to and from the UAE and, unlike Emirates,
has utilized them extensively in the recent past, e.g. on the Dubai-Muscat, Dubai-Dammam
and Abu Dhabi-Kuwait sectors. In addition, Lufthansa has established a significant cargo
hub in the UAE (Sharjah), operating multiple weekly flights to various Asian destinations
such as Hong Kong and Bangkok.
- Owns 40% of the operating company which finances and runs Terminal 2 of Munich
Airport.
- Is a member of the consortium in 2006 which attempted to gain majority control via
privatization of Germany’s sole ATC provider DFS, and confirmed interest in making another
bid.
13. ‘…Emirates could start flying to Berlin tomorrow in place of either Düsseldorf,
Frankfurt, Hamburg or Munich.’
• Why should Emirates terminate a successful city pair? Which of our four successful routes
between Germany and Dubai would Lufthansa suggest we cancel? - hitting German jobs as
well as local direct and indirect economic prospects. Berlin is no different to Düsseldorf to
Munich and we believe that an Emirates service between Berlin and Dubai would stand on its
own merits - like the route between Dubai and Stuttgart which Emirates is also seeking the
right to serve.
14. ‘By 2012 Emirates aims to be twice the size of Lufthansa…on long-haul routes’
• It is not Emirates’ aim to be twice the size of Lufthansa, rather our growth has always been
progressive, measured and reflective of the success of our commercially driven business
model and an expanding global network.
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• The below table illustrates that Emirates’ fleet size is only 20% that of the Lufthansa group
total, whose current and future long-haul fleet size is actually comparable with that of
Emirates.
Country
Lufthansa’s percentage of international
connecting passengers
India
81%
Fleet Size
Canada
71%
2010
2012
Venezuela
80%
Lufthansa Group
722
972*
Nigeria
77%
- Long haul aircraft
127
167*
Iran
77%
Ethiopia
84%
Emirates
145
154
*LH 2009 annual report listing for orders/options 2010-2016, does not include Brussels Airline, SunExpress or
JetBlue.
15. ‘…only one thing counts: for the state owned carrier Emirates to poach market share and
passengers from other markets and other hubs at all costs and to reroute traffic via Dubai.’
• The ‘Air Transport Initiative’ (a grouping comprising of Lufthansa, Fraport, Munich airport,
DFS German Air Traffic Control) report on the competitiveness of the German aviation
industry in 2009 [see www.initiative-luftverkehr.de], looked at the positive competitive
impact of new air services and noted that:
- When Emirates commenced a second daily service between Düsseldorf and Dubai in 2006,
the number of passengers from the Düsseldorf area who routed via either Munich or
Frankfurt on Lufthansa services to destinations in Asia actually grew.
•Carriage of connecting passengers between various international markets via an airline’s
home hub is an integral part of the business model for all large network carriers, including
Emirates and Lufthansa. Lufthansa has been one of this model’s pioneers and has become
arguably the largest carrier of international connecting passengers in the world. As the
following examples demonstrate, connecting passengers not originating or terminating
their journey in Germany (so called ‘6th freedom’ passengers) dominate Lufthansa’s total
passenger traffic between Germany and various countries worldwide, as per booking
information sourced from Global Distribution Systems.
• Hence, while Lufthansa is relying on the connecting traffic (without calling this practice
‘poaching’ though), they are trying at all costs to deny some other airlines, such as Emirates,
the right to also compete for this traffic, in order to protect Lufthansa’s powerful market
position.
16. ‘…flights to Asia through a Gulf hub take on average between 4 and 6 hours longer
than from European hubs. This not only consumes more kerosene, it also generates
considerably higher carbon dioxide emissions.’
• There are many examples of Lufthansa’s own flights via its German hubs being significantly
longer than direct flights of other airlines operating on a given city pair, including flights
between Dubai and various cities in North and South America that are operated non-stop
by Emirates. Our industry and the environment are best served when we concentrate on
technology and business efficiency, rather than brickbats through such distorted arguments
however.
• Like the Association of European Airlines (of which Lufthansa is a member) Emirates is an
active proponent of a global sectoral approach for managing aviation emissions.
17. ‘…non EU carriers such as Emirates are not regulated by the stringent environmental
(e.g. emission trading) and consumer laws of the European Union.’
• Emirates has invested considerable time and resources preparing for the EU’s Emissions
Trading Scheme, with EU destinations accounting for 20% of our overall activity. Emirates
is committed to meeting the compliance requirements of the scheme. The costs to our
business and customers will be in excess of a billion Euros over the first phase of the
scheme to 2020.
• Following a check on airline selling practices in the EU during the summer of 2009,
Commissioner Meglena Kuneva of the Directorate General for Health and Consumers
(DG SANCO) said: “Emirates Airline is fully in compliance with all the requirements laid
down in EU consumer legislation…I commend Emirates Airline as a non-EU carrier for the
observance of Community law and for the commitment to maintain these standards and to
consumer protection.”
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18. ‘Lufthansa generates more than three and a half times as many jobs in Germany per
aircraft than Emirates.’
• Emirates is not aware of any such research and is dubious of its accuracy. In any case, this
is a false argument, since to fully evaluate the overall economic benefit of aviation for a
region or a country, the ‘catalytic effects’ of aviation needs to be considered also – as did the
‘Air Transport Initiative’ in their 2009 report entitled the ‘Catalytic Economic Effects of Air
Transport in Germany’.
• Furthermore, any discussion of German jobs needs to take into account Germany’s multibillion Euro and job relationship with Emirates, dating back to 1987 when the first Airbus
aircraft joined our fleet.
Emirates is currently the biggest buyer of the Airbus A380 and one of the largest customers
for the A350 aircraft. Emirates’ total orders have helped support many thousands of German
jobs at Airbus and via its suppliers in Germany. The A380 programme alone is estimated to
add some 20,000 direct German jobs - and at least the same number of indirect jobs.
19. ‘The Lufthansa Group’s seven airlines (Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels
Airlines, Germanwings, Eurowings, Sunexpress) offer over 800 flights per week to and
from Berlin.’
• Given such a dominant presence, it is doubtful that Emirates flights to Berlin could pose any
threat to Lufthansa Group whatsoever.
Photo: Messe Stuttgart
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Emirates Holidays ‘A World of Choice’ 2010-2011 brochure
Why Berlin and Stuttgart are not included
Stuttgart
Berlin
Berlin
Stuttgart
Emirates Holidays, Emirates’ tour-operating arm, recently unveiled its new ‘A World of Choice’
2010-2011 brochure offering a choice of over 120 destinations across 33 countries on our
network. Over 160,000 copies of the near 500-page brochure are distributed globally across
Emirates’ world-wide markets.
An additional 50,000 copies are produced in Arabic language exclusively for the Middle East
and North African markets.
Why shouldn’t these destinations be allowed
to be offered by Emirates?
This prestigious brochure has 20 pages dedicated solely to the promotion of Germany featuring
our current German destinations of Frankfurt, Munich, Düsseldorf and Hamburg.
In the absence of Emirates’ direct flights, Berlin and Stuttgart could not be included in the
current 2010/11 edition - a missed opportunity for these two attractive destinations to benefit
from new tourism flows generated from the large diverse inbound tourism markets served by
Emirates.
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